The general purpose of a mascara applicator or brush is to pick up a supply of mascara from a container, carry it from a reservoir of the container through a dosing or metering system (in one embodiment, a wiper) without dripping, and apply it evenly to the eyelashes. The applicator must accomplish this without leaving lumps or blobs of the material on the eyelashes.
Conventional mascara applicators generally include a brush attached to an elongated rod that is also connected to a handle. The brush typically comprises a twisted wire core and a bristle portion including a number of uniformly sized bristles spaced evenly throughout its length. The brush and rod are usually housed in a somewhat cylindrical container, and the brush handle forms a closure for the container when the mascara applicator is not in use.
When use of the mascara applicator is desired, the handle is pulled away from the container to remove the mascara-laden brush. During application of mascara to the eyelashes, the brush rod is generally positioned parallel to the face, and oriented horizontally with the brush handle held beside a cheek or temple for purposes of manipulation and alignment of the brush with the eyelashes.
During transfer of mascara to the eyelashes, the applicator is twisted or rotated along its central axis and moved in a vertical, up-and-down motion, while held in a horizontal or vertical position, such as up to the forehead to do the top eyelashes, and down from the forehead to do the bottom eyelashes. Some users will hold the mascara brush handle in the right hand to apply mascara to the right eyelashes, and switch the brush handle to the left hand to apply mascara to the left eyelashes. Other users favor the right or left hand and use the favored hand to apply mascara to the eyelashes of both the right and left eyes. However, even when the favored hand is used for the eyelashes of both eyes, it may be necessary to hold the mascara applicator in the opposite hand to get to the extreme ends of the eyelash that are furthest from the favored hand or closest to the nose bridge.
It should be noted that the application of mascara with conventional mascara applicators usually requires dozens of repeated strokes and rotations or twists to achieve the desired eyelash appearance. Because of the manner in which a conventional mascara applicator is held and manipulated, the application of mascara can be a difficult and tiresome exercise.